The space between Christmas and New Year’s is one of my favorite weeks of the year. And this year was no different.
All week, mornings had been slow—soft pants, legos on the floor, reading my book, music playing in the background. Breakfast stretched a little longer than it probably should have. Sometimes the TV stayed on. It felt unhurried. Human.
As much as I loved that slower pace, it was time to get back to school. Time to get back into routine. But Tuesday morning, when the kids woke up, it hit me because everything shifted.
No more slow mornings. It was go time. Get out the door. Don’t miss the bus. Get to meetings. Start answering emails. The pace went from standing still to full speed almost instantly.
By that night, I could feel it in a different way. I looked at my calendar and saw everything January was already holding—and I felt worried and behind almost immediately. Not because I don’t love what I do. Not because I’m ungrateful. But because the pace escalated so fast that it felt like there was no room to breathe.
And I’m guessing I’m not the only one.
Maybe for you it wasn’t a calendar—it was the alarm going off, the emails piling up, the kids’ schedules filling in, or that familiar knot in your stomach as the week approached. That sense that before the year even really gets going, it already feels full.
That’s what led us to begin our new series, Clean Slate, this past Sunday. Not because we needed another self-improvement plan or a fresh set of goals, but because so many of us are already carrying more than we realize.
When we want things to change, our instinct is usually to add something new. Try harder. Do better. Be more disciplined. But what we talked about together is that real, lasting change rarely starts with addition. It starts with subtraction. With letting go. With making space.
And often, what needs to be released isn’t something obviously bad. It’s just heavy. It’s just crowded. It’s just one more thing layered onto a life that’s already moving too fast.
So as you move through this week, I want to invite you into something simple and gentle. Not a big decision. Not a dramatic shift. Just a pause.
What might be weighing you down right now?
What’s taking up more space than it should?
What might God be inviting you to loosen your grip on as this year begins?
You don’t have to answer those questions all at once. You don’t have to fix everything. Sometimes naming the weight is the first faithful step.
This Sunday, we’ll keep building on that foundation—not by trying to change everything at once, but by talking about what it looks like to take a small step forward. Not rushed. Not overwhelming. Just honest and doable.
I’m grateful to be on this journey with you—and I hope you’ll join us as we continue it together.
See you Sunday,
Matt
PS. If you missed last Sunday’s message you can watch it below:
